Blog Gone Wild For British Diplomat In Thailand

[sriracha john]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...12/ndiplo12.xml

Mr Proud said last night: "It's all rubbish really, lies about me. I'm pretty crushed to be honest."

Mr Proud, who has a Thai girlfriend, Lek, and is from Box Hill in Surrey, pointed out he had only been to Bangkok's red light districts twice in the past year, on both occasions to show them to visitors

The untold portion of the story:

[ace]

Blog Gone Wild for British Diplomat

.........

"When my posting to the embassy ends next month, I don't think I can bear to leave; this country is my home now," he wrote in his introductory note, suggesting he had perhaps found his true calling and would stay in Thailand to become a "professional web-blogger."

= Associated Press

Should be OK getting the Visa then............

Could be an opening there for those needing work permits?

Does this post make me a web-blogger?

Ace

[Ijustwannateach]

I find the fact that a full-grown man may or may not have been visiting a red-light district to be a non-story, except that Thailand is still a curiously Victorian country and a frightening number of the foreigners who settle here start to internalise those values (or more frighteningly, held them already).

The real story here, I think, is how dangerous it is to expose oneself on the Internet. More and more people are learning that *that* is truly making oneself a vulnerable PUBLIC identity, accountable in a manner all out of proportion to common sense to a large number of anonymous persons, in a way that being a mere politician or celebrity never was. Anonymity should be an overriding concern of anyone using the Internet.

"S"

[CbrLad]

I just have a deeper sense of standards that says to me, that these people sign up for these roles, and are very well remunerated to represent their countries, so should be on their best behaviour, at all times.

If they aren't prepared to do so, then they shouldn't have taken the job in the first place. From the perspective of governence and government, why did I pay 17.5% VAT + a high marginal rate of income tax in the UK so that I could fund some blokes naughty nights out? NHS waiting lists, lousy transport etc etc etc come to mind back in the old dart.

At a more serious level, doing things like this can sure lead to being put in positions where you potentially could compromise your nations security interests?

Maybe I've just watched too many episodes of the west wing.

He is a civil servant not a pollie. Your 17.5% VAT plus income tax, sure it goes to pay his wage, but you are only paying him for 8 hours a day, not 24x7. Diplomats are just normal people, in fact they are just normal civil servants who are doing their job away from their home not in central London or elsewhere. Sure out of hours they are still representatives of Her Majesty but it doesn't mean they should be hung for doing things everyone else does. The silly thing this guy did was doing the blog in the first instance and identifying publicly that he worked in the Embassy, going to Cowboy and going with Bargirls is hardly a capital offence.

Oh A friend of mine worked for an embassy and he assured me the scutiny of diplomats sponsing visas is higher for them, for the reasons of public perception. Oh it said he worked for the Political section, in that area he would have nothing at all to do with visa's, belive it or not embassies do more than issue visa's, replace passports and provide consular assistance.

Edited April 12, 2007 by CbrLad

[kayo]

Sadly it has indeed all been deleted from the web link to his blog.

I was prepared to post in support of him.

After all, it is not an uncommon occurance. His only real mistake was that he got caught.

I've been caught in many situations, far too much for my own good in my lifetime, never anything truely evil, but taboo incidents, so I sympathise.

Seems like a decent bloke to me.

At least he's honest about it. Some far higher-level officials in various gov'ts have been caught before and try to cover up, lie, cheat, even kill, to hide their secret.

Anyway, he didn't do anything illegal. Prostitution is illegal in Thailand, but let's not forget that there is no prostitution in Thailand according to the previous gov't.

[Jimjim]

Most expats and tourists visit the red-light districts, and I'd say most of them do it just to see what all the buzz is about these areas and because they've heard of them so much. Most probably don't partake of the services offered. I think I read one quote where Proud said he used prostitutes, so that doesn't apply to him.

However, as Shakespaere said it best, this is all much ado about nothing.

Also, British taxpayers weren't funding his extremely infrequent visits to these districts, they were funding the hard work he did. What he does on his own time is his business.

We all know prostitution in Thailand is illegal, but in a distinctly Thai way I'd call it illegally legal.

[TAWP]

Moral outcry will soon follow and the witchhunt for his b*lls by some radical feminists back home...

[mosquitoman]

Most expats and tourists visit the red-light districts, and I'd say most of them do it just to see what all the buzz is about these areas and because they've heard of them so much. Most probably don't partake of the services offered. I think I read one quote where Proud said he used prostitutes, so that doesn't apply to him.

However, as Shakespaere said it best, this is all much ado about nothing.

Also, British taxpayers weren't funding his extremely infrequent visits to these districts, they were funding the hard work he did. What he does on his own time is his business.

We all know prostitution in Thailand is illegal, but in a distinctly Thai way I'd call it illegally legal.

At last common sense prevails, who are we to judge this guy.

I suspect if he hads been a French, Italian or Thai diplomat we would not have heard a murmer.

I suspect this is a case of

No sex please we are British

MM

[mark lamai]

wouldn't it make sense to open a UK Visa office in Soi Cowboy.

say on the second floor of Baccara.

after hours applications accepted and so much easier to find,

have a beer and a fondle while waiting,

a much more pleasant experience as a precursor to the good life in sunny sexy england.

[ilyushin]

I wouldn't expect any less sociable behavior from any diplomatic corp.

[aussiestyle1983]

Moral outcry will soon follow and the witchhunt for his b*lls by some radical feminists back home...

How very true............

Having said that, can you blame the guy for experiencing the lovely Thai ladies who are a hel_l of a lot better than the "radical feminist pigs" in most western countries

It would of just been better for him if he kept his mouth shut.

[ColPyat]

Most expats and tourists visit the red-light districts, and I'd say most of them do it just to see what all the buzz is about these areas and because they've heard of them so much. Most probably don't partake of the services offered. I think I read one quote where Proud said he used prostitutes, so that doesn't apply to him.

However, as Shakespaere said it best, this is all much ado about nothing.

Also, British taxpayers weren't funding his extremely infrequent visits to these districts, they were funding the hard work he did. What he does on his own time is his business.

We all know prostitution in Thailand is illegal, but in a distinctly Thai way I'd call it illegally legal.

At last common sense prevails, who are we to judge this guy.

I suspect if he hads been a French, Italian or Thai diplomat we would not have heard a murmer.

I suspect this is a case of

No sex please we are British

MM

This is another disgusting affair of internet shit stirrers trying to destroy the life of somebody just because the internet has given them the possibility to. But why should we be surprised - we see this sort of behavior here all the time. The blogger did not make any blog on the marvels of Thai prostitution, so i don't see any reason why some have to sling mud out of the anonymity.

Even more disgusting is that the media has actually taken this up as an international story, instead of completely ignoring this non-event.

This has nothing to do with national security - only with hateful people without a life trying to get some sort of attention by destroying somebody else's, maybe without even realizing how pain they cause their target.

[lamphun]

This is another disgusting affair of internet shit stirrers trying to destroy the life of somebody just because the internet has given them the possibility to.

I agree but I'm more concerned as to how someone so obviously stupid could reach such a high position in the British diplomatic service. "Head of the Political Section". This seems to indicate that the old school boys are still running the organisation.

[ColPyat]

This is another disgusting affair of internet shit stirrers trying to destroy the life of somebody just because the internet has given them the possibility to.

I agree but I'm more concerned as to how someone so obviously stupid could reach such a high position in the British diplomatic service. "Head of the Political Section". This seems to indicate that the old school boys are still running the organisation.

Diplomats are basically just celebrated civil servants.

Back home the same rank would entitle the bearer a small side cubicle without any overseas benefits and no decision making powers other than signing a new pencil order that was already OK'ed from higher up.

If he would make it one day to ambassador rank in one of the world's capitals, then he has reached some sort of status.

I fear though that the guys next posting will be Mongolia or Kazakhstan.

[Old Croc]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...12/ndiplo12.xml

Mr Proud said last night: "It's all rubbish really, lies about me. I'm pretty crushed to be honest."

Mr Proud, who has a Thai girlfriend, Lek, and is from Box Hill in Surrey, pointed out he had only been to Bangkok's red light districts twice in the past year, on both occasions to show them to visitors

oh yeah and the nation has just deleted the entire blog

When I see a newbie suddenly pop up, and with their only couple of posts, give an insightful and yet slanted view of a contensious issue, I often wonder what their connection may be.

[Richard W]

We all know prostitution in Thailand is illegal, but in a distinctly Thai way I'd call it illegally legal.

Is it? Brothels are illegal, but that's a different matter. How is the legal distinction made between a prostitute and a mia noi?

[Old Croc]

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml...12/ndiplo12.xml

Mr Proud said last night: "It's all rubbish really, lies about me. I'm pretty crushed to be honest."

Mr Proud, who has a Thai girlfriend, Lek, and is from Box Hill in Surrey, pointed out he had only been to Bangkok's red light districts twice in the past year, on both occasions to show them to visitors

The untold portion of the story:

I once had to take an Australian Government Minister for a tour (by car) of Kalgoorlie's infamous red light district. It had nothing to do with his portfolio, he was just curious. He was smart enough to not patronise the establishments.

[skippybangkok]

He is a civil servant not a pollie. Your 17.5% VAT plus income tax, sure it goes to pay his wage, but you are only paying him for 8 hours a day, not 24x7. Diplomats are just normal people, in fact they are just normal civil servants who are doing their job away from their home not in central London or elsewhere. Sure out of hours they are still representatives of Her Majesty but it doesn't mean they should be hung for doing things everyone else does. The silly thing this guy did was doing the blog in the first instance and identifying publicly that he worked in the Embassy, going to Cowboy and going with Bargirls is hardly a capital offence.

Obviously a civil sevant ? Using this logic, I can see openly Blair visiting brothels in Nana, and maybe the UK chief of police smoking some dope up in Pai ( cause it's their free time and they can do what they want ). Not just illegal, but I doubt it sets a good image for the establishment.

At the end of the day, the higher up the ranks you go, the more scrutiny you undergo. I know a few guys in Embassies / UN etc here in bangkok who are very visible and are smart enough not to be seen very public places like Cowboy / Nana / PP. Looks like this guy was a total idiot 1) for going to such places when he is a more senior public figure 2) for not looking for more discrete places ( after all, the who's who of bangkok also enjoy fresh fruit in discrete places) 3) being stupid enough for agreeing to be in a blog

[Crushdepth]

Dear holier-than-thou-oh-the-moral-outrage-of-my-taxpayer-dollars-ill-spent crowd:

Get off your hypocritical high horses and stop pretending you've "never ever" been to Patpong or similar. It's standard tourist fare and your protestations are pathetic.

[skippybangkok]

Dear holier-than-thou-oh-the-moral-outrage-of-my-taxpayer-dollars-ill-spent crowd:

Get off your hypocritical high horses and stop pretending you've "never ever" been to Patpong or similar. It's standard tourist fare and your protestations are pathetic.

Guess your missing the point. Not many people claiming to be holier than thou, and i bet this guy is kicking himself for being such an idiot.

At the end of the day, if ur in govt / a celebrety etc, you dont have a "private life".

[CbrLad]

Dear holier-than-thou-oh-the-moral-outrage-of-my-taxpayer-dollars-ill-spent crowd:

Get off your hypocritical high horses and stop pretending you've "never ever" been to Patpong or similar. It's standard tourist fare and your protestations are pathetic.

Guess your missing the point. Not many people claiming to be holier than thou, and i bet this guy is kicking himself for being such an idiot.

At the end of the day, if ur in govt / a celebrety etc, you dont have a "private life".

Thats the thing he is not in government and he is not a celebraty, although after this he may well be. He is a pen pushing civil servant. People in Government are the pollies not the servants. Yes he would come under closer scutiny being a representative of Her Majesty, but he is in no way compensated for that scrutiny. It is his discretion that is the problem, not going there in the first place. Now if he was the Ambassador, then maybe yes, but see most Ambassador are political apointees and not true civil servants.

And no I am not one now, but yes in a previous life I work as a 'public' servant in the Australian Defence Dept, but now working in a non public service job in the UK for a Telco equipment supplier.

[WaiWai]

Looks like this guy was a total idiot 1) for going to such places when he is a more senior public figure 2) for not looking for more discrete places ( after all, the who's who of bangkok also enjoy fresh fruit in discrete places) 3) being stupid enough for agreeing to be in a blog

.

Heh. Exactly. What was he thinking ?

OK, he doesn't seem to do a lot of thinking.

Like it or not, we all represent our countries of origin to some degree.

I'm more concerned as to how someone so obviously stupid could reach such a high position in the British diplomatic service. "Head of the Political Section". This seems to indicate that the old school boys are still running the organisation.

I had precisely the same thought.

Edited April 13, 2007 by WaiWai

[nick2k]

Most expats and tourists visit the red-light districts, and I'd say most of them do it just to see what all the buzz is about these areas and because they've heard of them so much. Most probably don't partake of the services offered. I think I read one quote where Proud said he used prostitutes, so that doesn't apply to him.

However, as Shakespaere said it best, this is all much ado about nothing.

Also, British taxpayers weren't funding his extremely infrequent visits to these districts, they were funding the hard work he did. What he does on his own time is his business.

We all know prostitution in Thailand is illegal, but in a distinctly Thai way I'd call it illegally legal.

At last common sense prevails, who are we to judge this guy.

I suspect if he hads been a French, Italian or Thai diplomat we would not have heard a murmer.

I suspect this is a case of

No sex please we are British

MM

This is another disgusting affair of internet shit stirrers trying to destroy the life of somebody just because the internet has given them the possibility to. But why should we be surprised - we see this sort of behavior here all the time. The blogger did not make any blog on the marvels of Thai prostitution, so i don't see any reason why some have to sling mud out of the anonymity.

Even more disgusting is that the media has actually taken this up as an international story, instead of completely ignoring this non-event.

This has nothing to do with national security - only with hateful people without a life trying to get some sort of attention by destroying somebody else's, maybe without even realizing how pain they cause their target.

I agree with you. what we are dealing with are neurotics and psychotics. or simply put - people who are mentally sick.

[Password]

When I see a newbie suddenly pop up, and with their only couple of posts, give an insightful and yet slanted view of a contensious issue, I often wonder what their connection may be.

Yeah. Ya got me. rofl

I came here to avenge my blog's death

Sorry, nothing so exciting, I've been a lurker here for a bit, just not posted yet.

[marshbags]

B.Post BREAKING NEWS 16:07

Quote:-

Diplomat's blog withdrawn after red light visits

(BangkokPost.com from Agencies) - British foreign ministry withdrew a blog of British diplomat in Bangkok after accusations that he had been spotted in the city's red light district, according to AFP.

Ian Proud, who serves as head of the British embassy's political section in Bangkok, had his blog posted on the website of the newspaper The Nation. The blog had already been withdrawn.

Proud, 38, has admitted to visiting Cowboy Street, the city's red light district, but has been quoted as saying that "the suggestion that I'm some sort of upholder of the sex trade in Bangkok ... It's pathetic, frankly."

Unquote>

Please go to the following url for the complete article:-

http://www.bangkokpost.com/breaking_news/b...s.php?id=118065

It,s a pity really, but predictable and i am suprised it didn,t come a lot sooner.

He must have had lot,s of interesting stuff to keep us all amused that he was going to post ????

He should have kept it anonymous regarding his real I.D and used a pen name.

Don,t know if this is mentioned on his blog before it was withdrawn and the B.Embassy finally put the boot in.

marshbags

Edited April 13, 2007 by marshbags

[TAWP]

Next time: "don't allow anon comments".

[sunshine13]

i hate all governments, everywhere, and all those who recieve a paycheck from them (except teacher and firemen).

i especially hate that diploments short line at immigration.

Edited April 13, 2007 by sunshine13

[george]

British diplomat's blog withdrawn after claims of Thai red light visits

LONDON: -- The British foreign ministry said on Thursday that the blog of a British diplomat in Bangkok had been withdrawn after accusations that he had been spotted in the city's red light district.

Ian Proud, whose blog was posted on the website of the Thai national newspaper The Nation, (nationmultimedia.com) denied the "malicious accusations" made on the site, the foreign ministry said.

"These were personal comments made by a member of the British Embassy in Bangkok," a Foreign Office spokesman said.

"He is a member of the diplomatic service and as such we do not comment ... I believe the blog has been withdrawn."

"Ian has been the victim of malicious accusations about his personal behaviour. He has rejected such accusations."

The foreign ministry also said it was reviewing its policy on allowing diplomats to write blogs.

Proud, 38, has admitted to visiting Cowboy Street in the Thai capital, part of the city's red light district, but has been quoted as saying that "the suggestion that I'm some sort of upholder of the sex trade in Bangkok ... It's pathetic, frankly."

Proud's four-year tenure in Bangkok as head of the British embassy's political section is set to end next month, according to his profile in the blog.

-- AFP 2007-04-13

[george]

This topic continues here:

http://www.thaivisa.com/forum/index.php?showtopic=116071